Commanders News: Sam Howell, Ron Rivera, Montez Sweat and Week 9

Commanders HC Ron Rivera's reflection

If Montez Sweat extracted maximum value, that was not the same case for Chase Young. A once generational talent taken No. 2 overall, the defensive end was shipped to the San Francisco 49ers for a compensatory third-rounder next spring, which represents a steep fall from grace despite his decent enough start to the campaign.

This was a player the Washington Commanders were banking on to be a foundational piece. Unfortunately, it didn't work out that way, which Ron Rivera stated via USA Today Sports was primarily down to the player's significant injury issues.

"Nobody thought that those things [injuries] would come up. So, that’s the unfortunate part. Well, I think that more so than anything else, as we put this plan together, I think it’s really what we felt was in the best interest of our football team going forward. We had a plan going into this; the front office put together what those offers were, and we sat down and talked about the best way to go with it, the best direction, and then sat down with ownership, and everybody was aligned when we were done talking about it."

- Ron Rivera via USA Today Sports

Perhaps a fresh start was the best thing for everybody, especially as Young looked set to depart for nothing in free agency after the Commanders didn't pick up his fifth-year option. What comes next for the player and his previous employers remains to be seen.